DDR Team League Proposal News Source: Inhouse (www.ddruk.com) Posted by Wildfireskunk on Wednesday 07th May 2008 09:55:41 BST Good morning everyone! How are we all today? Today I come with a proposal for a team league for the DDR teams that exist around the UK, that will hopefully create the oppurtunity for some new ones to pop up too. It's nothing overly complex, but it should be a fun yearly competition that spans likely over the course of 9 months or so. Below are the details I've written up. Thanks to Shadowman for help in thinking this up, and I wish for people to read the idea and comment with questions, critisisms, and more importantly tell me if you'd do it, as if I get no interest I won't. Quote: DDR UK Team Tournament League The first and most obvious thing about this is that it requires you to be in a team. There are already a few teams established here in the UK at the moment, but I feel that nothing is being done for teams in terms of events for them to go to. We have the big singles tournament going on at the moment but that's it. So I've decided to do my job by putting forward a plan for either early next year or later this year, to setup a Team League for those who want to bring there teams into competition with the others around the country. Now, what I'm hoping to see here is the current teams get all excited about the idea, and for other people to perhaps form teams for themselves to enter. Team play with friends not only helps you get better quicker, it's also a lot more fun to play with other people, and of course the socialising doesn't have to stop just at DDR So, how would this work? Well, here's the basics of what I wish to do. League Table Anyone here a football fan? Me neither. But even so, I know that they have a pretty good thing going down with how they sort out all their games. 20 teams, each teams plays every other team twice (once at their home ground, once at the other teams home ground), with 3 1 or 0 points being awarded for wins draws and losses respectively. Points are updated after every game and by the end of it all you have a table of all the teams, top to bottom, in order of how they did against everyone. That seems to work for most competetive team sports if you ask me, so why can't we apply it to DDR? The only issue here (and possible downfall of the plan) is that teams would have to travel several times throughout the year in order to compete at other players 'home grounds', but the dates will be announced well in advance so you can book tickets early and get them for cheap. Plus, it's not like you'd be travelling around merely to compete with other players. We're all nice guys here and I'm sure many teams after their match would have a nice afternoon in a pub/at the arcade/around the city of the home team with them, making a good day out of it right? So that's how it would work, which means it would be time to define some things! Teams Now in order for this to work all the teams would first of all have to be standardized. Which means something like... A team will consist of 4 players, with 1 or 2 'backup' players incase of injury, or someone in the 1st team being unable to attend for other reasons, if the team thinks they might be needed. Now yes I know that will come as a blow to some of the teams already around since you may already have more than 4 active players, but this is not a disaster! A '1st team' would have to be chosen before each match from the full team roster, with the rest of the team being backups incase of injury/cheerleaders/mascots (they obviously won't be forced to travel though if they don't want). Thus in this case every player has a chance to be used, but unlike a team made up only of 4 people, not everyone will necissarily have to attend every game. Another idea could be for big teams to split themselves down into a couple of league teams for the season. For instance, The Portsmouth Contingent could have... Team 1 - Scott, Sam, Mike, John Team 2 - Matt, Chris, Josh, Dave And that would be fine. For those of you who would like to create a team, keep it between 4 and 6 members only. All football teams have extra players incase of unforseen circumstances, so an allowance of an extra 2 seems fair to me for teams just starting out. All full team lists (a list of all the players in the team) would be published at the start of the 'season', and only the players on those first lists would be allowed to be used by the team. e.g - Tom, Bob, Naomi, Kevin, and Kimberly are the l33t DDR cru. A few games into the season a new good player (Toby) moves into town and joins their group and team. That's fine, but unfortunately due to Toby not being around at the start he would not be allowed to participate on behalf of the team for any of their tournaments. He will just have to wait till next year... So yeah. Team = At least 4 players, and only those on the published team lists can play the season. Tournament Style Quite an important bit. Being that the old usual knockout style is used for eeeeeverything, it won't be used here. Meaning that we have some other options to consider! So far, from the depths of my thoughts my favourite idea is this one... - The tournament will work like so. 24 songs shall be played over the course of the tournament, and they shall all be selected at random. Once the random song has been selected the teams both have 20 seconds to confer, and nominate a player to play the random song. They both tell the judge (as not to influence the other teams choice), and a vs match happens between the chosen pair. The winner of the song (Based on high score, dependant on machine type) earns a point for their team and all is well. To make this fair, each player in the team will only be able to be picked 6 times, meaning that everyone in the team has to plays equally. So tactical picks will be essential! At the end of the 24 songs the team with the most points is the winner, huzzah! And if there's a draw? Another random song is chosen and in the same manner as before, someone in the team is nominated to play it... sudden death! I like to think of that one kinda like The Crystal Maze, only you don't get locked in if you fail the song (although....). And we don't have to be fixed on 24 songs, there is space for change. I just thought that would take a nice amount of time. Usable machines Now for this I'm thinking any kind of machine should be usable. That way we aren't discriminating against teams who's only home ground machine is a Dancing Stage Fusion or similar. As long as the machine is in an arcade, is a DDR/DS/ITG machine, and is working fine, then I think a team should be able to use it as their home machine. Similar to the team list, the local ground and machine will be required in the team signup forms, and will be the one that will be used. And that is how I see it working... So who's up for this? Spread the word! Plan new teams for UK domination! Let's see some response and discussion! The end

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Last reply by willo1188 on Thursday 15th May 2008 17:45:29 BST

DDR:UK Events: Stand content suggestions plz News Source: Inhouse (www.ddruk.com) Posted by Wildfireskunk on Friday 18th April 2008 13:38:11 BST Good morning all! Now most of you should know that DDR:UK is holding a donation drive at the moment to raise money for the events we do. It may seem cheeky to some of you, but if you saw our budget sheet you'd quickly change your mind Anyway. We all hold these events at place like the London MCM Expo because we love the games and the community, and want to try and expand it by showing off the games to new people and pulling them in. And also of course because it's nice to bring everyone together once in a while and have a good time playing the games we all like, and meeting people we might only otherwise chat to over the internet. So, since the Donation Drive is mainly aimed at funding things for the community like the Expo and conventions we attend, we thought it would be a nice idea to ask you, the community, what kind of new things we should buy with your money! We usually keep upto date with Pop'n Music, Guitar Hero, Singstar, DDR, and we're looking to have Rock Band for this time too. Plus we have our little multiplayer console game section, the DDX, and the PPP machine. But there's always new games coming out, and I'm sure some of you have some good ideas that we've not thought of before. So, what do you guys want to see us getting for the stand to make it more fun for everyone who goes? Games or otherwise? Sensible ideas only please! Anyone asking us to buy a IIDX machine will be personally teabagged by Myst at the may expo (maybe). But any sensible ones might be picked up on and seen at future events! And of course, don't forget to donate so we can actually afford these shiney new things! (PROTIP - Don't plant money like you do in in animal crossing. Money trees don't grow from it, and it isn't easy to find after )

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Last reply by The_Usagi on Monday 05th May 2008 12:30:55 BST

DDRUK needs you! News Source: Donation Drive 2008 Posted by Myst on Monday 14th April 2008 13:25:44 BST To the members of DDRUK, As you are aware, DDRUK runs and assists at many events around the United Kingdom, running items such as the dance machine, console games, tournaments, and on top of that, run the website. We at DDRUK have always tried to give you our best, to ensure that everyone has an enjoyable time, to the best of our abilities. However there comes a time, when even DDRUK would like to bring you more, and again go beyond what you expect from us. However we would like to request your help. DDRUK very rarely does this, as most of the time the money for running the website, getting to and from the events, getting the equipment hired, all comes from my own pocket and the pockets of the staff members who have kindly assisted me over the past 5 and a half years. Each event DDRUK runs costs money, anywhere between £50 for the fuel to run the van, all the way up to the large events, where the last one cost DDRUK just over £4000 to run, this does not even take into consideration that I have to pay for the upkeep of the servers that the website is run on. But I want to keep going, DDRUK wants to keep going, we want to provide you with an even better experience than before. I am opening up this donation drive, so that you as members of the website can make a difference, I would like to ask for your assistance with the running of the events, and to enable us to bring you an even better experience. I am also opening this up in stages, as reaching the final goal may not happen, but at least you can see what items DDRUK could get from your donations. Any donation would go towards the website, or the events that we run, be it simple things like getting the latest Bemani game to display on the stand, all the way up to setting the scene on the stage for the Regional Tournaments. I thank you for your time in reading this. Colin Barker Aka Myst ---- Donation Drive Main Page

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Last reply by nikoboivin on Friday 25th April 2008 12:45:03 BST

Rock Band - Wont magically get cheaper because you want it to News Source: Eurogamer Posted by Kazz on Friday 11th April 2008 12:19:01 BST Harmonix has told the Internet that no matter how much they complain the price will not drop. Seems to me that Harmonix should have learnt to stop talking a long time ago and with the atrocious attitude they have shown to their consumers, they will have put a nice big black mark on their name. The sales figures will probably speak for themselves... Originally posted by: Eurogamer In a post on the Rock Band forums product development manager Greg LoPiccolo wrote, "We’re not making a killing on Rock Band in Europe. We are incredibly sensitive to pricing issues. We are painfully aware that the higher the price we charge, the less copies we’ll sell. "We are strongly motivated to keep the price as low as possible. That said, we don’t propose to lose money on it. The fact of the matter is, the costs of releasing in Europe are far higher than in the US, in some ways uniquely so for Rock Band compared to other game titles, because of the size of the peripherals." LoPiccolo declined to reveal cost structure details - "That would probably get me fired, and rightly so." Instead he highlighted the extra cost involved with shipping a larger product box and doing so outside the US: "Seriously, I was shocked to learn how much it costs us to ship an RB peripherals box to Europe. It’s way more than you’d expect." According to LoPiccolo it doesn't make sense to compare the manufacturer-recommended US and UK prices for Rock Band. He wheeled out the old VAT line, stating, "That’s not the whole discrepancy, but it’s a big chunk of it." LoPiccolo also observed that European retailers are free to cut the price of games, unlike their US counterparts. "So a reasonable price comparison is what you actually pay, not just the SRP, which means two different things in the two territories. "We’re not gouging you, primarily because doing so doesn’t serve our interests," LoPiccolo continued. "We can only build our franchise if you buy our games. You may conclude that Rock Band isn’t worth the price charged, and that is your prerogative. But it’s not magically going to get cheaper because you wish it to be so. "We’ve sold a ton of these in the US at a far higher price point than people are used to paying for a videogame, because it really is a new and different experience... Once you get a crack at it, you’ll know whether or not it’s worth the money. We think you might decide that it is."

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Last reply by killer_roach on Tuesday 15th April 2008 23:56:23 BST

DDR Mobile - Design A Character Contest News Source: Konami USA Posted by Wildfireskunk on Wednesday 09th April 2008 22:18:52 BST Quote: The event allows DDR fans to design their own character for a future DDR Mobile title. Once the contest is over, a grand prize winner will be selected and will have the character which they designed featured in the DDR Mobile title set to release this Fall. In addition to having their character featured within the DDR title, they will also receive a design trophy. Also, 20 second grand-prize winners will be selected to receive limited edition DDR T-Shirts and will also have the characters which they designed showcased in an official Winner's Gallery on the Official Dance Dance Revolution Community Site. No purchase is necessary to enter the contest, and interested participants may join here: http://www.konami-data.com/ddrcontest/index.php The downside? Only Americans can enter it... So, tell your american friends about your DDR Character ideas and see if you can outdo Spike the DDR aspiring fire dog for a place in the game!

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Last reply by subaroo on Monday 14th April 2008 21:44:12 BST

Play.com reduces cost of Rock Band News Source: Eurogamer Posted by Kazz on Wednesday 09th April 2008 11:15:49 BST And the first retail deals appear! Seems to me that retailers are worried about sales after the wave of negative press. Time will tell how many more retailers will follow suit! Originally posted by: Eurogamer Play.com is the first online retailer to reduce the hefty asking price for Rock Band and all three instruments. Its deal cuts the Band in a Box instruments pack - containing drum, microphone and guitar peripherals - down by 30 pounds to GBP 99.99. Play.com is also offering 10 pounds off the game price, bringing the cost of the entire package down to GBP 140. However, separate peripherals are being sold at the recently recommended price of GBP 69.99 for the drums and GBP 59.99 for the wireless guitar. Elsewhere retailers GAME and Gameplay are yet to list Rock Band on their sites. HMV, Gamestation and Amazon are offering the game for GBP 49.99, but haven't put a price on the instrument pack.

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Last reply by Hybride on Wednesday 09th April 2008 18:18:27 BST

More progress on GF and DM to make an appearance out of Japan maybe? News Source: Siliconera Posted by Wildfireskunk on Wednesday 09th April 2008 09:33:22 BST Seeing the success of Rock Band in the US, and how much us poor EU gamers were begging for the game to get a release (and now begging for it to be cheaper than a used car), looks like maybe they've got off their haunches and got somewhere with GF and DM! Quote: Guitar Hero and Rock Band are cash cows. Meanwhile Konami’s series of Bemani instrument games are nearly unrecognizable for the mainstream market Guitar Hero captured. Unfortunately for Konami they may have missed the boat, but that doesn’t mean they are going to give up on the idea of introducing Guitar Freaks and Drummania outside of Japan. Last year we discovered Konami registered Guitar Revolution and Drum Revolution, which sound like the US names for Guitar Freaks and Drummania respectively. On April 3rd, Konami registered Rock Revolution. This could be a localized name for a combination of Guitar Freaks V4 Rock x Rock and Drum Mania V4 Rock x Rock. Or this could be a sign that Konami plans to take a bite out of Rock Band’s lunch. If that happens I wonder how many people will look at Rock Revolution, glare, and say “Rock Band knock-off.” Although the games were both shown over here at ATEI this year, as far as I know nothing more has really been said of them since then. Let's see where this goes then

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Last reply by dancefreak on Wednesday 09th April 2008 11:23:30 BST

Rock Band man defends Euro price + Interview with Rob Kay News Source: Eurogamer Posted by Kazz on Wednesday 09th April 2008 09:17:33 BST After the outcry caused by the announcement of the crazy Rock Band prices and bundles, Rob Kay, Rock Band's lead designer, has come forward to defend the decision stating "We're not trying to rip anybody off." Originally posted by: Eurogamer Harmonix's Rob Kay has responded to criticisms over the European price point for Rock Band, telling Eurogamer: "We're not trying to rip anybody off." As announced earlier today, Rock Band will launch in Europe on May 23rd for Xbox 360, with PS2, PS3 and Wii versions to follow in the summer. The total cost for the game, drum kit, microphone and guitar will come to GBP 180 / EUR 240 - compared to USD 169 (GBP 85 / EUR 107) in the States. Speaking to Eurogamer today Kay, who is lead designer on the game, conceded, "The combined price, if you add all that up and decide you want that full experience, is quite high. It's not something that is normal in videogames. "But Rock Band isn't normal in videogames," he continued. "This is an entirely new thing. What other game comes with three peripherals that are all different? It just makes sense for the experience we're trying to deliver." When asked why the game will be so much more expensive in the UK than it is in the US, Kay cited VAT and the higher price of consumer electronics generally. "These are definitely not excuses so much as contributing reasons," he stated. "I can't talk to the explicit pricing - how it gets split down between retailers and distributors and the whole chain - because I don't actually know that much about it." Kay went on to say he can see why consumers might be "a bit put off" by the price of Rock Band, but observed there is an option to buy just one instrument or a microphone separately. He added, "I firmly believe that if people do [buy it] they'll have an amazing experience they couldn't get anywhere else." In addition to Rob's statement, he also had an interview with Eurogamer. The full interview can be found here!

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Last reply by killer_roach on Wednesday 09th April 2008 13:54:20 BST

EA confirms pricing for Rock Band game and peripherals News Source: Eurogamer Posted by Kazz on Tuesday 08th April 2008 11:00:12 BST Well that didn't take as long as I expected! However it's a shame that we will not be getting the bundle the US had. Originally posted by: Eurogamer EA has confirmed the price for Rock Band, following the European date announcement this morning. Europe, unlike the US, will not get all of the instruments bundled together with the game. Instead, you will have to fork out for an Instrument Edition at GBP 129.99 / EUR 169 - comprised of the drum kit, guitar and microphone - then buy the game separately for GBP 49.99 / EUR 69.99. Anyone after the whole lot will be looking at a total of GBP 180 / EUR 240, then. That's rather more than in the US, where you can buy the game and all the instruments for USD 169 - equivalent to around GBP 85 / EUR 107. Wireless guitars will be sold separately for GBP 59.99 / EUR 79.99, while the drum kit will be GBP 69.99 / EUR 89.99. Hopefully retailers will be offering their own bundles.

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Last reply by killer_roach on Wednesday 09th April 2008 13:45:01 BST

Rock Band gets official European Release date! News Source: Eurogamer Posted by Kazz on Tuesday 08th April 2008 09:16:23 BST Rock Band has finally been given it's official European release date! The price is yet to be announce, but Ill update as I find new info Originally posted by: Eurogamer Electronic Arts will be releasing the Xbox 360 version of Rock Band in Europe on 23rd May. It will be a timed exclusive for Microsoft, with PS3, PS2 and Wii offerings to appear "later this summer". Euro Rock Band will feature a selection of exclusive songs, as was rumoured in March. These include tracks from Oasis and Blur plus adopted German favourite Die Toten Hosen, which might mean "the trouser hose". But also might not. We will get the full compliment of existing downloadable tracks on 27th May, too. This adds up to a meaty 70 songs, which you can get a load of over on the official site. Going forwards, both European and American versions will be given fresh tracks at the same time each week. The full list of Euro-exclusive songs can be found below. English * "Beetlebum" by Blur * "Rock 'n' Roll Star" by Oasis * "Monsoon" by Tokio Hotel * "Hysteria" by Muse German * "Hier Kommt Alex" by Die Toten Hosen * "Perfekte Welle" by Juli * "Countdown to Insanity" by H-Block X French * "Manu Chao" by Les Wampas * "New Wave" by Playmo We're waiting to hear back about how much it will all cost, and EA is hosting an event today to showcase the game to the European press, so hopefully we'll find out soon.

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Last reply by Ryosuke on Tuesday 08th April 2008 22:18:33 BST

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